Outtakes of a Practical Nature
by silentnc
Summary: Outtakes from Practicality. Includes my Support Stacie Auction story.


**Disclaimer: SM owns Twilight + I am not SM = I do not own Twilight.**

***If you have not read my story Practicality, stop here and go read it first. Oh yeah, please?***

**This is my Support Stacie story from WAY back in September 2009. Bemily bid on me, won, then requested the impossible… 5k of Creepy James! It seriously eeks me out to write one page of him normally, so this was a bit of a challenge.**

**She wanted something along the lines of him watching an interaction between Edward and Bella, and this is the outcome. And since she is super awesome, she is allowing me to share it with all of you as well.**

"Dammit," I growled under my breath. I felt like a fucking teenager, using pins to unlock a door. I swear that stupid, uptight bitch that at the Department who realized I had an extra universal key signed out was due a multi-colored eye, perhaps two even.

I hadn't thought this would be necessary in the first place. Things were fine while Cullen was gone, everything progressing nicely even if it was a bit slow. I could do slow. But with him back…

I took a deep breath, trying to reign in the urge just to kick the door open. I could do this with my eyes closed ten years ago; I just needed to focus.

I tried to ignore the nagging scenario where Edward had stayed the fuck away and I progressed with Bella to the point where she gave me a key and none of this shit was even needed. If only.

As I twisted the top pin again, I felt the telltale pop and grinned like a fool. I guess a little old school brush-up never hurt anyone. It was always important to keep your touch.

After tucking the pins into my back pocket, I twisted the knob and Bella's apartment door swung open easily. I had waited and watched patiently until all three of them left this morning. I knew that Alice and Bella had full schedules all day and fucking Edward was never home before six, so I expected no surprises.

Still, I was cautious as I quietly closed the door behind me before turning to scan the entryway and dining room. They kept the place tidy at least, which would be a handy quality in Bella when we were living together. I wasn't a fucking slob, but Bella would be a definite improvement.

I moved into the living room, or 'Edward's room,' because it was where he practically fucking lived now. Like the pussy he was, he wouldn't even admit why he was so devoted to staying with his sister when I called him out on it. He was trying to hide all these secret but obvious feelings for Bella and I was close to just dragging his ass out into the parking lot to settle this shit like real men. When Bella saw what a chicken shit he was for not admitting his feelings, _then _saw him get his ass beat, there would be no doubt of her devotion to me. Luckily it didn't seem necessary, since she was obvious choosing me over him despite his constant and close proximity.

I spotted his lone suitcase placed inconspicuously behind the sofa. I took note of its exact placement and location before pulling it out and opening it carefully, making sure nothing shifted within.

I lifted various items and checked between folded articles of clothing but nothing was hidden. There were only clothes, not a stashed condom or a top-secret work document or even an edition of Playboy.

What a fucking goody two-shoes.

I zipped the suitcase up and carefully lined it back up in its place before taking a seat on the couch, glancing around at the open set up of the apartment. From the couch I could see the dining room and part of the kitchen, the entire living room, and a glimpse of the bathroom door in the hallway.

I was almost glad I had the knowledge that Alice had decorated. It was way too stuffy for my taste with expensive art and angular light fixtures. Straight, sleek furniture and gaudy decorations were not made with guys in mind.

Satisfied that Bella would never decorate our apartment like this, I started to focus on my task. I glanced around the room again, trying to decide the best angle. I wanted to be able to see as much as possible, but at the same time, I needed the key spots, like the couch or the kitchen.

I looked around again. It might have been possible to get the entire area from the right corner behind the couch aimed toward the kitchen, but it wouldn't leave me with a good view of the couch or inside the kitchen.

There was no way to get them all, and I only had one camera. I would have to decide on one spot and stick with it.

The kitchen was tempting, since I knew Bella liked to cook. I spent hours daydreaming of her cooking in my kitchen, making my favorites dishes while she tasted her work in the process, her tongue wrapping around her delicate little finger. She wore nothing but a dainty apron in those scenarios.

No, the kitchen was no good. While it would be fucking awesome to have that footage, it wasn't practical. My main goal was to see how Edward and Bella interacted while I wasn't around. I was sure they interacted in the kitchen some, but that would not be the best place to catch the most information.

I already knew the answer. I had to aim it at the couch.

I didn't want this to be the best choice, but it was obvious. It was probably where everyone sat in the evenings. But the thought that they hung out, Alice or no, on what served as Edward's fucking bed, irked the shit out of me. It didn't matter that it was really a couch, or that it was normal to hang out in the living room, I just didn't want my Bella near anything where Edward could lay her down. My mind filled with my own fantasies where I took Bella on my couch, or even this one, which only made me angrier. Edward probably spent nights on this couch with very similar fantasies.

I balled my fists, taking my usual deep breaths to calm down. I couldn't fuck up his couch, not today. Maybe soon. Or maybe I could fuck up his face soon. Even better.

I stood and walked to the television, eyeing it for a good hiding place for the nickel-sized camera with its tiny microphone. This camera was better than anything we had at work, purchased online through an anonymous supplier who didn't give a shit about your name as long as you coughed up the asking price. It came with the equipment that would transit wireless data to the devices in my home, and all the data was coded with all kinds of technology shit to keep anyone else from hacking into it.

The television sat on some kind of shitty artsy table with no possibility of properly concealing my camera. I looked at the ceiling directly above, and as luck would have it, just to the right was an air and heating vent. I smiled to myself as went to the kitchen table to get a chair to stand on.

It was hard to get to, but the vent cover was easy to pop off. I had to position it and check the handheld device a few times to be sure of the picture, especially when the vent was replaced, but all in all, it went smoothly.

*

Once I got back to my apartment I set up all the equipment, wiring Bella's living room into mine. I opted to connect everything to my television, wanting the best view I could get of everything that was going on behind those doors. I figured watching it live on 44 inches would suffice.

After everything was in place and I had an entire channel dedicated to my Bella, I sat down with a smug satisfaction. Let that Cullen bitch make any moves now.

The picture was pretty good quality considering the angle and distance from the couch. I would be able to make out facial expressions fairly clearly. All in all I was pretty damned pleased with my purchase. Now it was time to get my money's worth.

My plan took a turn for the worst after sixty-four minutes of watching dust mites float through Bella's living room. As much as I would have loved to watch anything that unfolded live, I would need to set up my recorder. That way I could fast-forward through the inactivity and also still have eyes on the place when I was away.

I connected my recorder and started it, then fell back on the couch. I was fucking wiped from the long day, and I let my eyes close.

_I was watching TV. Not my Bella channel of course, because she was right next to me, snuggled tightly under my arm and against my chest. Every few minutes she would squirm in my arms, as if trying to get closer even though it wasn't possible._

_God, I loved her. My fucking Bella._

_I kissed the top of her head and the scent of her sweet, flowery smelling shampoo went straight to my head. She tipped her face back to look me in the eye and smile before pushing upward to meet my lips with hers. I kissed her softly, feeling complete now that she was here and mine. _

_I brought my other hand across my body and used it to cup her face as I started to deepen the kiss. She reacted immediately, eager to please me. Eager to be with me._

_I smiled slightly at her as she wiggled out from under my arm only to throw her far leg over my lap, straddling me without breaking our connection. She was always so willing…_

_I held her face in both my hands as she situated herself over me, making me way too fucking hard in the process. She smiled knowingly into her kiss, making a growl form and escape from deep within my throat. My hands slowly slid from her face down her neck before I let them skim over her perfectly round breasts teasingly. She arched toward my hands, but I kept them at only a ghost of touch before bringing them to her tiny waist and gripping her there. She bit her lip as she looked down at me. _

_Then… she laughed._

_It was almost foreign, the pure joy that produced it like nothing I had ever heard from her, but I knew it was hers. She giggled like the giddy teenage girl she was as she looked at me with eyes full of light and bliss._

_I opened my mouth to ask what had come over her, even though I was close to laughing myself just from the sound of it, but she spoke first. And her words halted my heart._

"_Edward!"_

In my dream - and in reality, apparently - I sprang forward into an upright and rigid position on the couch.

I was furious about the dream, my heart bruising the inside of my ribcage and my face two shades shy of pure purple, but I was also dazed as I tried to separate what was real and what wasn't.

Her laugh sounded out again. I blinked my eyes a few times, trying to make them focus. When I opened them again, I saw her.

She was on the couch in her apartment, alone with Edward Cullen, who was the one making her fucking giggle. Why had I never heard that laugh? And where the fuck was Alice? I had hoped that she was there more often than not to dull anything romantic from developing between her brother and my girlfriend, but she was not in the shot.

I glanced at the clock to my left. 10:10 p.m.

_Alice probably spends all her time with Jasper_, I realized. She was probably never at her place, never there to keep Edward's prissy hands off my Bella.

I focused back on the screen across from me, trying to figure out what in the hell he was doing to make her laugh. They were on either sides of the couch, which made me feel a little better, with an oversized bowl between them. Edward was grabbing handfuls of… popcorn, and tossing them at her. She was trying to throw some back, but every time she unshielded her face Edward was ready and pelting her with more.

She was giggling manically.

Edward was in hysterics himself, probably mostly from the sound of Bella's bell-like laughter. Hot, bitter anger ran through my veins, coursing through me like razors. I wanted to burst from my skin, to run like hell to that apartment and end Cullen's life with my bare hands.

_I_ was her fucking boyfriend. _I_ was the one that supposed to make her laugh. To make her feel so at ease that she could be like this around me, completely carefree and laughing so hard it made her insides hurt.

She was _mine_.

On my TV screen, Bella held up her hands in surrender, gasping for air. Edward stopped his attack, letting her catch her breath. Her beet red face wore the most beautiful smile, and wisps of her hair twirled around her face in sexy disarray. She was wearing flannel pajama pants with a gray tank top, under which the perfect breasts I had just dreamt about heaved up and down furiously with each breath. She was so stunningly beautiful.

Realizing that Edward was getting this view of her firsthand, my eyes slowly slid over to his face. His fucking smile said it all. He saw it too. How she was perfect, and beautiful, and kind, and…

Fucking _mine_.

She was mine, yet he was the one sharing this with her, this moment of lightheartedness and natural high. It was all supposed to be mine.

"Truce?" her sweet, soft voice asked almost pleadingly. She was still smiling, still looking like a goddess in her fresh-faced innocence.

Edward pretended to consider it for a long moment before nodding and stuffing the remaining popcorn in his hand that had been meant for ammo into his mouth, smiling stupidly as he watched her and chewed.

I had never wanted to end someone's life as badly as I did his.

After a moment of watching him carefully, Bella finally believed him and let her guard down as she relaxed into the couch bit by bit. They started to quietly watch television again, and suddenly I was pissed I didn't know what they are watching. What if it is some kind of romantic, girly shit, or even worse, a guy movie with a more hardcore love scene?

Then my mind dangerously wandered to how many nights they had spent this way, would spend this way in the future. They were obviously close enough to be playful and sit in companionable silence. They agreed on what to watch. They spent close to every evening alone, without Alice or me anywhere around, growing fucking closer and closer.

I tried not to linger on it, sure my blood pressure would put me out of my misery if I did, but it was something I had to deal with. I certainly couldn't allow this bonding to continue.

I watched as detached as possible while they continued to eat popcorn in the silence. Every so often their hands would touch on the way to the bowl between them, and they both would stop and hurriedly pull away. They acted as if the touch shocked them, afterward waiting for the other to get their handful before getting their own.

After a few moments they laughed simultaneously at something that happened on the television, glancing at each other before turning back. I could only make out bits and pieces of what they were watching, but at one point I thought I heard the recorded laughter that was used in sitcoms.

Did they watch this one a lot? Did they make a point of ensuring they were together at this time every week to see it with one another?

Fucking hell. This camera was going to be the end of me. There was no way I could sit here and watch shit like this night after night without beating the ever-living shit out of Edward or marching over to interrupt.

More importantly, what was going to piss me off the most was watching her with him and knowing this was nowhere close to what we had. Sure she was comfortable around me, laughed with me and joked about stuff, but it wasn't until seeing her this way that I noticed something was off.

I wanted to make her feel this way. I wanted to be the one who she was herself the most with, not fucking Cullen.

I closed my eyes and let my head fall against the couch as I let out a loud, frustrated sigh. What did he have that I didn't? I knew I wasn't a fucking pretty boy like him, but I had good looks. Girls hit on me and gave me shy, flirtatious smiles all the time. And yeah I didn't have as much money as him, but I had enough. I made sure I always had enough to live comfortably.

But those points aside, I knew that none of that was what was truly important to my Bella.

I peeked one eye open at my television set, seeing the two of them still sitting separately, even though it seemed as if Bella had given up on their snack. Every once in a while they laugh quietly to themselves, but other than that they seemed settled.

Satisfied that nothing seemed to be happening at the moment, I closed my eyes again and let myself daydream about Bella. I did it often enough, but they were usually more of a sexual nature. This time, my mind conjured up something much more PG rated.

_I walked in the door from work to find my apartment smelling like heaven. I pondered what my Bella would have cooked up for tonight. She was amazing like that, cooking my dinners and having them ready as soon as I got home._

_In the dining room she was placing large dishes full of food on the table, timely like always._

"_Welcome home, hon," she practically cooed before reaching up on her tiptoes to kiss my cheek sweetly. "I hope you don't mind, but I made steak."_

"_Sounds perfect," I hummed down to her. I sat down at my spot at the table while she dipped and prepared our plates. I took my first bite with confidence, because I knew it would be perfect._

"_Mmmm, this is amazing. How in the world did I so lucky as to have you?"_

"_I ask myself the same thing everyday," she smiled back at me._

_As we ate we discussed our day. She had a full day at school, and I had closed another case. Things were perfect._

_After filling myself completely, I pushed away my plate. "I'm so glad you decided to move in here. It's so much easier now."_

"_Oh, I know," she agreed. "Not to mention Alice's brother was getting too close for comfort." She stood from her seat and cleared the table, talking to me while I digested. _

_I could hear that bastard's name and not care now. Not only had I lined him out, but he knew better than to even try anymore. He was no longer a problem at all. She had clearly made her choice, because she was here, and she was mine. _

_The dinner was delicious as always, and I thanked my Bella with a kiss._

_Later we spent the evening on the couch again with her tucked under my arm as we watched TV. She was deeply interested in whatever was on. Instead of her usual fantasy clothing I mentally dressed her in; she had changed into her gray sweats and was wearing a navy, long sleeved t-shirt of mine that read Washington State Police Academy. It hung long on her and covered her hands, but it looked amazing on her._

_She snuggled into me and her scent enveloped my senses, filling me with thoughts of the amazing woman she was and how much she meant to me._

_She snickered lightly at something on the TV, making me join in even though I had been watching her instead of the show. She sighed contently and sagged against me once again. _

_My left front pants pocket, on the opposite side of where my Bella was lying, was practically pulsing. My usually confident, calm and cool demeanor faulted whenever I thought of what was in that pocket._

_Bella shifted against me again in an effort to get more comfortable, and in doing so caused my hand that had been lying causally on her side to slide down her ribs. She jumped up and giggled, looking at me accusingly._

"_Hey now, you did that yourself," I told her and her scolding eyes._

"_I wonder," she mused aloud, obviously not convinced by my confession, "if you are ticklish," she said suddenly, turning and digging her fingers into my ribs._

_It didn't faze me, but I let her try for a few seconds before she looked at me, defeated. _

"_Are you done?" I asked playfully._

_She huffed adorably and crossed her arms in front of her chest._

"_Now, I was being honest when I said I didn't do that on purpose," I said with warning as I shifted in my seat, trying to get a better angle to pounce on her. "But this," my smile spread across my face as she realized what was coming, "you brought this on yourself."_

_I launched on her, trapping her beneath me on the couch as I relentlessly tickled her until she was gasping for air._

"_James, please!" she cried, and I knew she was at her limit. I quit my assault on her ribs, but did not allow her to get up from under me as I held her wrists._

"_Did we learn our lesson?" I asked mockingly. _

_She grinned and bit her lip as she nodded, making her look amazingly beautiful as she lay beneath me. _

"_God, you're beautiful," the words fell from my mouth automatically, causing her lip to slip from between her teeth as her smile grew._

_I leaned down and kissed her sincerely, wanting her to feel how much I wanted and needed her. When I pulled back she whined in protest, but I pulled her up along with me._

"_Listen, Bella," I said, feeling my heart quicken. "I've thought of nothing but you for the last few months we have spent together. You are the reason I was put on this earth."_

_She smiled and started to return the sentiment, but I held up my finger to stop her. _

"_You know how much I love you. I don't know what I would do without you." Trying not to draw too much attention to my left hand as it moved to my pocket, I kept talking. "I know we still have a lot to learn about each other, but I don't have any doubt in my mind that it will be me and you in the end."_

_I pulled the item out of my pocket and held it at face level between us._

"_Isabella, will you marry me?" I asked. The ring I had been saving for since the night I met Bella glistened between us. I opted to present it without the box, because it felt more personal this way._

_Worried that I had not heard anything from her, I took a cautious glance at Bella's face. Her eyes were on mine, not the ring, and brimming with unshed tears. Her upper teeth gnawed viciously on her poor lower lip, but I could still see the smile that played on her mouth._

_She suddenly threw her arms around me, crushing the hand holding her ring into my chest. I used my free arm to wrap around her as I smiled in utter joy at her response._

"_So is that a yes?" I asked._

_She pulled back to look me in eye and I noticed some of her tears had escaped. "Of course that is a yes, silly!" she exclaimed before smashing her face and her lips against mine. "I love you so much," she said against my lips, kissing me wildly._

_I pulled back and grinned. "Do you want your ring?"_

"_Oh, yeah, right!" she said, her face as bright as I had ever seen it. I held the ring out again and she looked down at it, and I could tell she hadn't even seen it while I was asking her._

"_Oh my god, James, this is beautiful. Are you sure you can afford it?" she asked, her eyes lingering on the very large carat diamond that was perched on the ring._

"_You are worth so much more than this," I told her as I grabbed her left hand. Luck was on my side as it slid on easily, fitting perfectly._

_I looked up from the ring and our eyes met, both of us glowing from the moment. _

Sighing, longing for my vision to come true, I opened my eyes again to reality, where Bella was sitting peacefully with Edward instead of me. Seeming happy with him instead of me. Spending time with him instead of me.

Aggravated that I was so far from her mind, I grabbed my cell phone and called her. I watched the television closely to gage any reaction from either of them. When I finally heard the noise of her phone ringing from my TV, I was immediately disappointed. She had not assigned me a ringtone. I was her fucking boyfriend, and I did not have a ringtone. Edward fucking Cullen had a ringtone, but oh no, not me.

I tried to steady myself as I watched her look at her phone before she answered it. I didn't want to scream at her when she picked up. Her face showed no indifference when she noticed my name on her screen, no excitement or extreme happiness, which pissed me off even more, but I choked it back as well. I couldn't let on that I could see her in anyway, because if she found the camera that would definitely be the end.

"Hello?" she answered.

"Hey, babe, it's me. What are you up to?" I asked evenly, my superb control making my voice sound even and cool even though I was far from it.

"Watching TV. You?" she asked innocently. It pissed me off that she didn't mention Edward was with her. I wondered how many other times she was with him when I called and she just didn't mention him.

"The same," I told her truthfully.

"Are you watching The Soup, too?" she asked with a small smile that I would have known was there even without the camera to provide evidence.

"Yeah," I said.

"Isn't Joel McHale hilarious?" she laughed slightly. _Who the fuck is this Joel?_

"Yeah, definitely." I was satisfied that at least she didn't try to get away from Edward to talk to me or hide the fact that we were involved in front of him.

"So, what's up?" she asked when I didn't say anything else.

"Just thinking about you," I told her. It was the truth. It was all I did.

"Aw," she said sweetly, but did not offer any sentiment in return.

"Do you want to do something tomorrow?" I asked.

"Sure, give me a call in the morning and we'll figure something out," she said. "The show is coming back on, so I'll let you go."

"Alright," I agreed, even though it fucking pissed me off that she was being so dismissive. I knew that wasn't how she meant for it to sound, so I let it roll off me. "Goodnight."

"Night," her soft voice answered before she hung up.

I watched her carefully, waiting for any signs of her annoyance or Edward's meddling, but nothing happened. Neither seemed put-off at all by the call. It was a good sign, but something was still bothering me.

I needed to hit something.

I pulled on shoes and socks along with a sweatshirt and headed out the door and across the street. I walked fast, the fall air flogging me as I made it down the two blocks to get to my destination. There was way too much going on and I was on the brink of flipping my shit if I didn't get some aggression out and soon.

Finally my gym came into sight. It was one of the few around that allowed its members to have 24 hours access, which also made it popular as shit. Luckily tonight, only a few of the late night faithfuls were there, and none of them occupied my punching bag. I quickly gloved up and unleashed hell.

I enjoyed the distraction that the ache in my muscles brought as I swung punch after punch into the bag, making it move considerably. I usually warmed up with my other reps before taking to the bag, but tonight was not about regimen. It was about control. I had to release my tension over the whole Bella situation before it blew up in my face and caused me to screw everything up.

While the camera was definitely necessary, it was proving to be troublesome more than anything. I knew that it was only a matter of time before I saw something that would set me off to a point of no return, to a point where I wouldn't be able to stop myself from snatching her permanently away from fucking Cullen.

I punched until my hands were numb, continuing until the sensation had spread into my arms and they felt like jelly and I had to stop. It had only relieved a fraction of my anger but it was at least enough to keep me from fucking breaking down Bella's door in order to put a stop to the obvious thing developing between them.

I grabbed my towel and wiped my face with my wobbly arms before throwing it into a hamper and heading back into the cold night air. I shook my head as headed back home, deciding that Edward Cullen owed his life to that fucking punching bag.

**So, as hard as this was to write, it also made me flush out some more of James' personality. Hopefully I made it obvious in his dream and daydream how much he doesn't really know the real Bella, he has just built her up to be who he wants in his mind. We all know the real Bella isn't that Stepford, and that she would throw a fit over anyone giving her expensive jewelry, but to James, this is what he thinks he is getting.**


End file.
